Introduction

The goals of the Center for Innovation and Outcomes Research (CIOR) are to streamline data acquisition and management, conduct research related to surgical outcomes and quality, and provide research and statistical expertise. The Center was created to facilitate and foster research collaborations between the various Divisions in the Department of Surgery as well as between the Department of Surgery and other Departments and institutions at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center.

A further aim of the Center is to develop quality improvement programs that will impact clinical practices and development of medical technology.

CIOR's mission is threefold.

The first is clinical outcomes research. In addition to traditional clinical end points, such as mortality, additional focus will center on patient preferences, quality of life, and cost-effectiveness. The second mission is to devise quality improvement programs on the basis of the data, and the third is to develop policy analysis of issues surrounding the development, introduction and use of medical technology.

The Center houses and collaborates with economists, health policy analysts, epidemiologists, computer programmers, auditors, statisticians and decision analysts.